A rewarding purpose they hope to never fulfill

JON MARK BEILUE

Friday

Apr 29, 2011 at 12:01 AM

Tod Mayfield and David Pitt finally wound their way to the front of the long line Monday to speak with Josephine Macias, widow of Elias Jaquez, whose casket was just a few feet in front of them at a Dumas cemetery.

They each got down on a knee to offer their condolences to the wife of the Cactus firefighter who died April 20, but also to explain the primary reason they were there. Macias, pushed and pulled by all kinds of emotions by then, studied their faces in trying to understand the reason these strangers were there.

Then Mayfield handed over a $10,000 check from his breast pocket and she hugged his neck in a strong embrace.

"She just put her head on my shoulder and cried and said over and over again, 'Thank you, thank you, thank you,'" Mayfield said. "When she realized this was hers and she could do with it how she wanted, that's when I think it really hit her."

That moment crystallized for those two the purpose of the 100 Club chapter of Amarillo, why about 125 members donate $100 annually in case that tragic time ever occurs.

"It was a real tearjerker," said Pitt, the club president. "I walked away and my heart was swollen up as big as a watermelon."

The 100 Club is as unusual as it is meaningful. There's nothing social about it. While the board of directors meets monthly, the entire club meets just once a year, and that's just to satisfy the 501(c)3 requirement.

Members feel passionate about their mission, yet they hope they never have to fulfill it. How many clubs exist to provide the family of a fallen firefighter or law enforcement officer with a $10,000 check to help with mounting financial problems, but also as a token of gratitude for the service of a loved one?

"We don't ever want to use it for its intended purpose - we truly don't," said Mayfield, an Amarillo attorney. "But we know it's going to happen. Some tragedy is going to befall a firefighter or law enforcement officer in harm's way."

The club has been in existence in Amarillo since 2006 when Vance Reed of Great Western Distributors went to Houston on a Shriners Hospital visit, ran across a 100 Club in the city, and thought it would be a great idea to have one in Amarillo. Good luck on telling Reed no when he has a civic idea percolating in his head.

"We just put together a small board," Reed said, "and it took off from there."

In January, the club's board voted to expand its operation to the 26 counties of the Texas Panhandle. Some of the funds go to purchase equipment, such as infrared cameras for Potter County, and defibrillators for Randall County.

Monday was the second time the club had the difficult but satisfying duty of presenting a check to a family. In December 2008, the family of Amarillo police officer Mark Simmons was assisted monetarily after he died three years after he was paralyzed in a traffic accident.

"I came back from Dumas with a renewed sense of purpose about our organization," Mayfield said. "I sent an email to our board and said it was a privilege and honor to extend that gift on behalf of everyone. I truly felt in some small way we made a difference in people's lives."

The money isn't a trade for a life. No amount can ever replace that, nor is it intended to. It's a no-strings-attached financial gift. When Mayfield and Pitt hugged Macias and handed her the check, their obligation was finished. She does with it as she pleases.

"We're just trying to lessen a burden at a critical point in their lives," Mayfield said. "With most police officers and firefighters there are benefits that come with the job in a situation like this. But as we all know, some of these things take awhile. From our standpoint, we show up immediately to give them the money, and to say, 'By golly, we feel for you and mourn with you and want you to know people out there care for you."

The 100 Club is unlike the Kiwanis, Rotary or Lions Clubs that meet socially and then help and fund civic endeavors. A 100 Club member gets a small car sticker and the satisfaction of helping a widow or child if that time comes.

"This is not a social club," Mayfield said. "We don't have a Christmas party. Our sole purpose and only function is to raise funds in an effort to do what we did with Mr. Jaquez and his family. We want them to know we're there for them."

Jon Mark Beilue's column appears three times weekly. He can be reached at jon.beilue@amarillo.com or 806-345-3318. His blog appears on amarillo.com.

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